Message

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REJOICE OVER HER

Revelation 18:9-24

Key Verse: 18:20

“Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets! God has judged her for the way she treated you.”

In the last lesson we heard the words of God, “Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great” and “Come out of her, my people.” In today’s passage, we will see in detail how the political and commercial kingdom of Babylon the Great has fallen. Especially, we see the end of materialism. Two descriptions make a sharp contrast, “Woe! Woe, O great city” and “Rejoice over her.” We see judgment lamented and judgment enjoyed. God wants his people to have ultimate joy.

First, judgment lamented (1-19). There are three groups that are involved in this lament. Verse 9 says, “When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her.” The first group singled out among the three is “the kings of the earth”, meaning the world leaders. It is written three times that “the kings of the earth committed adultery with her.” (17:2; 18:3, 9). In other words, rather than acknowledging the true God, they prostituted themselves to the Antichrist and his system. All their passions are tied to Babylon. They not only committed adultery with her but also shared her luxury. They became rich through the luxury of Babylon.

When the kings of the earth see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her. What kind of weeping and mourning? It is not weeping and mourning over them, but over her. They do not repent of their sin of going far away from God in adultery and luxury. They seem to weep and mourn for not being able to enjoy such things, for losing them.

Then verse 10 sys, “Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry: ‘Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power. In one hour your doom has come!” It may well be that the great city is the capital of the Empire of Babylon the great and this judgment initially hits the city itself, the centre. And the city burns before the final destruction of everything comes. The leaders of the world are away from it. These leaders are scattered all over the world, working for the one-world government under the Antichrist and they see the great city going down in flames. How could they see it from far away? In our time we can understand it completely. They watched through cable TV or the Internet. They cry, “Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power. In one hour your doom has come!” They realize that everything is coming down, and they are going to lose everything they have worked so hard to gain.

They are not in the very place of destruction of the great city. It could be one more chance for them to turn to God at this last moment. But being terrified at her torment, they remain unrepentant with ungodly sorrow or worldly sorrow (2 Cor. 7:10). Their cry, “Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power! In one hour your doom has come” indicates that the doom of Babylon has come in one hour, not even in one day. This is an imminent doom. However, they cannot see their own doom. We are reminded of what Jesus said in Luke 9:25, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?” (Mk. 3:36; Mt. 16:26). They are kings of the earth, but they forfeit their own soul, even though God gives them chances to repent to the very end.

Now verse 11 says, “The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes anymore.” The second group of people to lament are the merchants of the earth. These are the buyers and sellers, the businessmen, the stockbrokers and those who handle money. They weep and mourn on a monetary level. They also do not weep and mourn over their sin; they don’t weep and mourn because they’ve been confronted about their evil deeds. They weep and mourn because they are losing money. They do not weep and mourn for something that is necessary, but for something that is a luxury.

Then there is the list of cargoes in verses 12 and 13: “cargoes of gold, silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble; cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and bodies and souls of men.” John lists 28 goods. In this list we can sense what the world economy looks like. We can just comment on a few. Gold comes first. We understand that gold is still a major issue and a major commodity. They say that silk in ancient times was so expensive—in fact, in the Roman time, that it was banned by Tiberius. North African citron/scented wood was valued for its magnificent colour, and it was used for costly furniture. Cinnamon and spice were related to perfume (Pro, 7:17). Frankincense was a gum rosin used as a fragrance coming from Southern Arabia. Carriages/wagons/chariots are like cars in our time. “Bodies and souls of men” are human beings sold as slaves in 2011 NIV. In our time, human trafficking is going on beyond our imagination.

These were typical items of business interchange and exchange in the ancient world (Eze. 27:12-22). And, of course, John is seeing into the future, but he’s seeing into the future from a perspective that is comprehensible to him, goods familiar to him. These are representative of the kind of things that will be bought and sold in the future, if not in some cases, the same things. What does this tell us? In spite of the seal judgments and the trumpet judgments and the bowl judgments, business is going as usual right up to the complete destruction. It tells us something about human ingenuity. In a collapsing world – crops being destroyed, seas being destroyed, fresh water being destroyed – they’re making it, and they’re still doing business somewhere along the line. They must have been having a hard time surviving, they are still moving this stuff around the globe to the end, probably using cheap labour power.

In verse 14 it says, “They will say, ‘The fruit you longed for is gone from you. All your riches and splendour have vanished never to be recovered.,” The fruit means your possessions, your luxuries, your wealth, everything you lusted for; it will all be gone. The whole system is bankrupt. It may well be that at that time, the central computer system is struck and everything is indeed lost. And all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from them, and men will no longer find them.

And in verse 15 “The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from her will stand far off, terrified at her torment. They will weep and mourn.” The merchants know so well the fruitlessness of the commerce of Babylon and the vanishing of her riches and splendour with no recovery at all. Yet, they are not repentant of their materialistic and money-oriented life, deeply steeped in such life. At this point, they are not swept away in the terrible destruction of Babylon in God’s mercy. But they will also just stand far off, terrified at her torment.

The merchants weep and mourn together with the kings of the earth. Perhaps there is a great business center going on in Babylon. Perhaps this speaks of just one large segment of the world economy. It’s interesting to note the union of merchants and kings in wailing over the destruction of Babylon. In ancient times, government and business were not united as they are now. They are absolutely inseparable in our time. The government and the economy of the world are one. We will have a world economy run by a world government. And we’re moving in that direction. Governments are absorbing more and more and more of the private enterprise. Here, they will weep over the loss of their luxuries.

So the kings and the merchants of the world weep, and they have the same dirge. In verse 16, the merchants cry out, “Woe! Woe, O great city, dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls! In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!” Here we clearly see the ruin of glittering things and great wealth of Babylon. Worldly wealth is gone in a moment.

Money or worldly wealth is not necessarily bad. What is important is where the heart is and how to use our wealth. Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-21, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where their thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” What a plain and wonderful truth of God! Jesus teaches us how to invest our wealth and even our very life. Nothing stored up on earth is eternal, but things stored up in heaven is eternal. Those who practice is this truth of God and those who do not have heaven and earth difference in their lives. Where to store up our treasures is such a serious matter. He clearly said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” May we all learn how to store up for ourselves treasures in heaven. Jesus also said in Luke 16:9, “I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.” Also, what an insightful word to use temporary wealth for eternity.

Then in verses 17b it says, “Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off.” Here is the third group to lament. Not just the leaders and the merchants and the people who have the money, but the salesmen and the distributors are mentioned. We know that at that time and also even now, moving stuff around the globe is dependent upon ocean travel. Airplanes cannot move all that stuff. It takes shipping to move huge volumes of goods like oil tanks and cars. This third group includes every sea captain and every passenger and sailor who is involved in the selling and the distribution of those goods, who’s involved in the care of those ships, who operates in any function in that distribution process. Nowadays we see that distribution and delivery companies are prosperous.

When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, “Was there ever a city like this great city?” (18) The bottom line of what they are saying is, “If this city can’t survive, nothing can.” They recognize that that is the very hub of the whole system, the strongest of all cities. If this city cannot stand, nothing can.

They will throw dust on their heads: this is an ancient expression of grief and pain and agony (Job 2:12; Lamentations 2:10). And with weeping and mourning they cry out: “Woe! Woe, O great city, where all who had ships on the sea became rich through her wealth! In one hour she has been brought to ruin!” (19). This third group said the same thing about the ruin of the great city, Babylon. They all see it. The world sees it. Whether the leaders of the world, business men, or salesmen and distributors, all will see it. There will be universal pain and grief, but notice that there is no repentance. There is, “Woe is Babylon”, but no, “Woe is me.” All their hopes, all their dreams were built on the Antichrist’s system. And they thought it could endure, and they thought it was stronger than God, but it is not. We see the powerful influence of materialism and commercialism of the world system of Babylon. We should watch out for it.

Second, judgment enjoyed” (20-24). Now verse 20 says, “Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets! God had judged her for the way she treated you.” What contrast to “Woe! Woe, O great city.” Amid the complete destruction of the great city Babylon, who are to rejoice? Heaven and saints and apostles and prophets! Notice that a voice from heaven speaks from verse 4 to verse 20. The voice began, saying, “Come out of her my people” and now ended, saying, “Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice saints and apostles and prophets! God had judged her for the way she treated you.” They are pictured back in 6:9-11. The souls who had been slain because of their faith cried out, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” We can infer that it was the saints and the apostles and the prophets that were pleading with God to bring about an end to sin; to bring about an end to man’s horrible day; to bring about an end to the unrighteousness, the injustice, the persecution; to bring about an end to those who dishonored God and refused to glory Him. They were pleading with God to come and pronounce just and righteous judgment. They were martyred and carried to glory. Here now the voice from heaven seems to be saying, “He pronounced this judgment for you. Here is your vindication; here is God’s vengeance. Rejoice.”

The voice, “Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets!” encourages us to fight a good fight of faith, specifically against the spirit of Babylon, coming out of her.

Now verse 21 says, “Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: ‘With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again.” What a vivid and visual picture of the description of Babylon’s destruction! This refers to Jeremiah 51:61-64, where Seraiah, a prince who accompanied Zedekiah into Babylon, is told, after reading Jeremiah’s prophecies, to take a stone and tie it to the scroll of the prophecies and throw it into the Euphrates River. Doing that, he was to say, “So will Babylon sink to rise no more because of the disaster I will bring upon her. And her people will fall.” That was the ancient Babylon that sank into darkness and oblivion. This prophecy also looks to the future Babylon. So here the same imagery taken from Jeremiah, the final destruction of this world system will be like a large millstone disappearing into the sea, never to be seen again.

The mighty angel says continually, “The music of harpists and musicians, flute players and trumpeters, will never be heard in you again. No workman of any trade will ever be found in you again. The sound of a millstone will never be heard in you again. The light of a lamp will never shine in you again. The voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again.”

Here we see the reason for their joy. It is the joy of victory. It seems that they sing a song of victory in joy: We see the expressions, “never be found in you again” or “ever be found”, or “never be heard in you again”: “the great city of Babylon will never be found again”, “no workman of any trade will ever be found again”, and “the light of a lamp will never shine again,” and “the music of harpist and musicians, flute players and trumpeters will never be heard in you again”, “the sound of a millstone will never be heard in you again”, and “the voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again.” This is again the joy over the destruction of Babylon, for they fought such a fierce battle against her, not joining in the spirit of Babylon. We have heard this kind of joy, rejoicing amid the sorrows of those who reject God and persecute his people. In Revelation 1:7 it says, “Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen.” In chapter 11:15-18, “The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.’ And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, ‘We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your power and have begun to reign. The nations were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great—and for destroying those who destroy the earth.’” And in Revelation 12:10-12, “Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: ‘Now has come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuse of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he know that his time is short.’”

Again here, the joy is the result of their spiritual fighting and victory in God. In our time we should really fight against materialism, commercialism, consumerism, and shopping spirit. No fighting, no joy. With fighting, we can have rejoicing in true victory.

The voice continued in verse 23b, “Your merchants were the world’s great men. By your magic spell all the nations were led astray.” In the ESV translation it says, “for your merchants were the great ones of the earth, and all nations were deceived by your sorcery.” Babylon literally seduces the world under the control of Satan and the Antichrist. And the merchants are in charge of everything, and everybody will bow to materialism.

Finally, in verse 24 the voice says, “In her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints and of all those who have been killed on the earth.” The most serious sin of Babylon was killing God’s people. It is written in 16:5-6, “Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: ‘You are just in these judgments, you who are and who were, the Holy One, because you have so judged; for they have shed the blood of your saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve.’” And in 17:6, it is written, “I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly astonished.” We saw how her end have come. In 17:16, “The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire.” She was destroyed by her own supporter. Here in her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints, and of all who have been killed on the earth. So here complete destruction came.

In this study, we clearly saw the end of political and economic kingdom of Babylon. May we rejoice over her in God, fighting against the spirit of Babylon whose doom is destined.

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